A Human Odyssey
by The Threat
Summary: Following up on the events from my earlier story 'Saga Of A Time World', the Doctor goes out to investigate something, but instead finds himself in a new situation.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: based on characters and situations owned by Arthur C. Clarke and BBC. The story's narrator is mine.

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><p>As I heard the Tardis making his traveling noise, a thought occurred to me. Before my last adventure, I slept for a few hours. After said adventure, I was out for... I don't know how long. Point is that I had rested twice since I met the Doctor, but the Doctor himself? I began wondering if he ever sleeps at all. This was something else to add to the many questions I have for him.<p>

"Something the matter?" the Doctor noticed I had been quiet for some time.

In order to answer his question, I suppose I should ask him the question that was on my mind. But as I considered it, I realized there were so many others. So if I asked him this question, I'll forget I've got others. So my reply was this.

"Where do I begin?" I questioned myself with this.

"If all this is becoming too much for you, I could always turn around and send you back home." the Doctor suggested.

"But not before we've gone and retrieved the memory that I'm allegedly missing?" I asked.

The Doctor hesitated: "Er... well... that is to say..."

I snickered: "Look, it's like this Doc. I have so many questions for you, but I don't know which ones to ask first."

"Ah." the Doctor suddenly understood, "Well, it'll be some time before we arrive at the Seraphs' planet. What do you want to know?"

I thought for a second. So the Doctor is not human, that much he already gave away. If he's not human, that meant he's not from Earth.

"What planet are you from?" I asked.

"Gallifrey." the Doctor answered.

"So you're Gallifreyan?" was my somewhat stupid next question.

"A Time Lord, more specifically." the Doctor replied.

Time Lord, I remembered, was what that Seraph kept calling him: "And your species would be...?"

"A Time Lord!" the Doctor seemed surprised I asked.

"Er... that's your species?" I questioned, "Sounds more like a title to me."

The Doctor grinned: "What do you call someone who knows physics?"

I didn't quite understand where that came from, but I said the first thing that came to mind: "A physicist?"

"Correct." the Doctor said, "But what if an entire species would know physics? To a point where even a child can understand it?"

To that, I could only guess: "Er... that would make everyone a physicist?"

"Exactly." the Doctor replied, "Before your people discovered fire, my people made time traveling child's play. Before any of us have come of age, everyone of us had traveled through time at least once. There was a time when one would become a Time Lord, but by now everyone learned how to do it, we eventually forgot the original name of our species, and started calling ourselves Time Lords instead."

"That easily?" I almost couldn't believe it.

"Well... no. Time traveling in itself had its own additional effect on us, forcing us to start calling ourselves something else." the Doctor continued.

"Effect?" I didn't like the sound of that.

"Remember how time traveling leaves residual energy?" the Doctor reminded me, "Since our method of traveling is different, we pretty much take that energy with us. It's not harmful, don't worry. However, years of being exposed to it, as well as our offspring... it changed us."

"Changed you?" I wondered.

"It's difficult to explain..." the Doctor replied, "... but what it comes down to is that time doesn't mean the same for us as it would to you."

"Is that why you never sleep?" I asked.

The Doctor laughed: "I do sleep, I just don't require it as much as you do."

The Tardis console started beeping, to which the Doctor reacted: "We're about to materialize."


	2. Chapter 2

I was about to step out of the Tardis, but then I realized I didn't want to walk into another death trap, just like the last place we visited. The Doctor noticed my hesitation, but he knew how to calm my nerves.

"Don't worry, breathing won't kill you this time." he said.

I couldn't think of a clever reply, so instead I just took one deep breath, opened the Tardis' doors and walked out.

It was a strange sight to behold. There was one building that had stairs leading up to its doors. There was a street, not only made of the same materials as the building, but also crowded with what looked like a mixture between a NASA space-probe and an everyday car. Some of them appeared to be made out of gold, which meant that these people didn't view gold the same way that my people do. Looking at the rising sun, I noticed something that was really peculiar. I'm not sure what it was that I saw, but it looked like there was a second sun coming from behind that sun. A sun's own separate sunrise would be the best way for me to describe it.

"Welcome to Grand Central." the Doctor said.

"Sorry?" I turned to ask.

"That's what this building is." the Doctor explained, "A sort of Grand Central for all the planet's visitors."

My mouth formed to say "oh", but I didn't actually say it. Instead, I looked back at the suns, then turned back to the Doctor: "Doc, what exactly am I seeing there?"

"What do you think you're seeing?" he answered my question with another question.

I shrugged: "Two suns?"

The Doctor smiled: "You really aren't as dumb as you think you are."

"Er... right. But how is that possible?" I asked.

"A star is basically a constant balance between its core and some heavier elements." the Doctor explained, "Introduce these heavier elements to a planet's core, and you could create a second star."

"I see." I replied, "But why would anyone want that?"

"These people believed with a second star they would potentially create a secondary source of energy that would power up their machines, increasing productivity,... you name it." the Doctor explained.

This would have made sense, had it not been for the fact that the planet was completely abandoned: "If this helped them, then where is everyone?"

Even the Doctor seemed saddened by this: "Yes, you need heat to survive, but you can still burn. For every advantage, there was a disadvantage. This extra sun only made the planet too hot for several species to survive, so the people were forced to evolve to a different state of being."

This didn't make sense: "How do you force evolution?"

"Take a good look at this car." the Doctor pointed to one of the cars on the road, "Notice anything unusual?"

I was about to mention the fact it was made of gold, but to the Doctor that may not be as unusual as it would be on my planet. So I took a closer look. It took me a while, but I eventually realized what was so unusual. There were no door to the car, nor did it seem like there was any room for anyone to sit in. It wouldn't mean so much if it were just the one, maybe two. But this was the case with all the cars.

"How did people drive these things?" I asked.

"You've noticed." the Doctor seemed pleased, "It's quite simple, really. Much like you have people on your planet surviving with artificial hearts and other intestines, these people had managed to allow their brains to survive with fully artificial bodies. After a while, they found a way to download their consciousness into the electric systems, so they could discard their physical brains."

"What are you saying?" I wondered, "That these people just... downloaded themselves inside these cars and used that to transport themselves?"

"No." the Doctor replied, "For transport, they can just e-mail themselves. These cars were mere means for thrills."

That made sense. Living as a sort of ghost in a machine may be the best way to stay alive for much longer than you otherwise would, but in living in the electric systems you have little to no interaction with the physical world, so of course they'd built these machines for that exact purpose.

Suddenly, I remembered something else: "I'm sorry, but how does that tie with my people? Or anything else?"

"Quite simple, really." the Doctor replied, "Becoming machines was just one means to survive. But in case that didn't work, they had a back-up plan working."

"Which is?" I wondered.

"They had made several monoliths, which they sent to planets across the universe." the Doctor explained, "These monoliths would send the right signals to the lifeforms of those planets, allowing them to start evolving into humans themselves.

"Here's a stupid question." I stated, "What's the point?"

"Isn't that obvious?" he questioned, "If the humans of this world couldn't survive, then at least they'd have planted the seeds that would bring about other humans across the universe. So if they didn't survive, at least humans would still exist."

Interesting, I thought to myself: "And what exactly happened to these people?"

"After many more years of living inside machines, they had found a way to become light-particles and radiation themselves, allowing them to exist outside the machines."

"In other words, they became ghosts?" I asked.

"Precisely." the Doctor replied.

"So if these people are ghosts now..." I tried to summarize, "... and the Seraphs are ghosts..."

"You understand now. Good." the Doctor sounded as though he was congratulating me.

"Well, doesn't look like we'd meet anybody down here." I said.

"For what I'm hoping to do, hopefully we won't have to." the Doctor said, "Come along."

He turned on his heel and lead the way. I wasn't too sure of what he was up to, but I didn't think he'd do anything that would cause any harm. At least he hadn't. So far.


	3. Chapter 3

We followed the road leading from what the Doctor called this planet's Grand Central. There were many other buildings, though I wondered what their use could possibly be. That is, since everyone on this planet had been just a consciousness inside the machines, I would think that the buildings we saw were nothing more but giant hard-drives (or this planet's equivalent of thereof) that would store these people's minds. But with every building I saw, I noticed there was room for people to walk. The buildings had doors and windows, implying there still were living things among them before they became ghosts. After a while, I found the remains of what looked like an android. It was definitely a machine, but with arms and legs, and what I would recognize as a head, except that it had a speaker for a mouth and cameras for eyes. This is pure speculation, but if these people needed to built their own cars just for the sake of driving, perhaps they needed to built synthetic bodies still, just for the thrill of walking and interacting with the real world they once knew. Which made me wonder something else. If these people became part of the electric systems, it would mean that their minds became computer-code. In other words, these people became series of 0's and 1's. As such, it should be possible for these people to conceive children, just by writing another series of 0's and 1's themselves. These... children had never known the physical realm, at least not as their parents had. I can understand why the originals would built bodies, because there would be a nostalgic feel about it for them. But for their children? Who weren't at all familiar with the concept of having a physical body? They wouldn't be familiar with thrills, or feelings of nostalgia. Or maybe there's something I was missing.

"Is everything alright?" the Doctor interrupted my thoughts.

I blinked my eyes, stammered in response: "Huh... what?"

He looked at the android body lying in front of me: "Yes. No matter how advanced a society, they can never let go of the past."

"I was thinking..." I started, "... or rather wondering... It's hard to put into words, but... what it comes down to is that I can't imagine what living in a world like this must have been like."

The Doctor nodded understandingly: "Five hundred years ago, your people couldn't grasp the idea that your planet is a sphere. Today, it's unthinkable that someone would still believe it flat."

I understood where he was going with this. There are some ideas and concepts that people have today that were virtually unthinkable in the past. The same applied here. The concept of living as a computer program is unthinkable to me. Or even the idea of never having been a physical being, and being born as a program, having to live in a world that is made for and by physical beings.

"Well, we'd better get going." the Doctor reminded me, "There should be a museum around here. We should visit that."

"A museum?" I questioned, "What for?"

"Because what we need became obsolete long ago." the Doctor said.

If I had any real idea of what it was he wanted to do, I would understand how what we need could be in a museum, or why he got her at a time this... thing we need would be in a museum, rather than to arrive at a time when "it" was still in use. I followed, hoping I'd find the answer soon.

I hadn't taken five steps yet, or I heard something. I turned to look: "Did you hear that?"

I heard the Doctor stop walking, and judging from how he sounded, he too turned to look around, in the same direction I was looking: "What did you hear?"

"Not sure." I answered, "Some kind of metal clank."

The Doctor shrugged: "Most of this city is made of metals, and is old enough to be in a state of decay. You must have heard a piece falling down."

He turned around to continue his path. I wasn't too sure if he was right. Call it paranoia because of my last adventure, or basic instinct, but I immediately looked at the lifeless android. As far as I could tell, it hadn't moved. I was probably just paranoid.


	4. Chapter 4

Eventually, we found a museum. But I didn't quite understand the point for these people to have one.

"Doc, why do they even need a museum?" I asked.

"Why do they need a museum?" the Doctor sounded insulted that I should ask.

"What I mean is..." I elaborated, "... if these people were so far ahead of us, wouldn't they have some form of the internet? And if yes, couldn't they just look up what they want to know? In fact, since they pretty much live on the internet, that shouldn't be a problem."

The Doctor nodded, seemingly understanding what I meant: "Quite true. But people just love to see things with their own eyes, rather than just looking at the pictures. Surely, you should understand that."

"Er..." there was one hole in that theory, "... these people didn't have eyes of their own. Anymore."

The Doctor smiled: "Quite a perceptive one, aren't you."

"Compliments don't answer questions." I reminded him.

"Why do you think people take pictures when they travel?" the Doctor asked.

I shrugged: "I never took any pictures myself, but if I'm to believe some other people, it's to tell others that they were there."

"Well then." the Doctor continued, "These people didn't have real eyes anymore, they had to use cameras to see. It's the perfect combination of seeing things with their own eyes, and taking pictures to tell others 'I was there'. Is it clear now?"

To me, this made humans seem weirder than I already thought them to be. But that tone that the Doctor was using made it seem like he compliments them for being weird. I blinked my eyes a few times, just to get back on why we got there: "So, what do you hope to find?"

"As you can imagine, there was a time that everyone was just a brain inside a machine." the Doctor explained, "So when they had invented the means to download their souls, they used it on everyone. Until there was nobody left, so such a machine would be a museum piece now."

"And it's that machine that we're looking for?" I asked.

"Yes." the Doctor replied, "I'll use it to download you onto the computer, and see if I can undo the memory that's been modified."

The idea of becoming a ghost in a machine was terrifying, yet the Doctor made it sound like it's the most natural thing in all of space and time.

The Doctor noticed the alarmed look on my face, he laughed reassuringly: "Don't worry. It won't hurt. At least, I should think not."

The idea that it may hurt hadn't even crossed my mind until then: "Not... helping!"

The Doctor looked around. I wasn't sure if he heard my objections, but when he talked, it was clear he didn't care: "That way, there's ancient history. So if this museum works like any other, then recent history should be... that way."

He pointed to a direction, which he himself followed. Just as he disappeared from view around a corner, I heard another metallic thud. But this time, it wasn't the only sound I heard. It was followed by heavy stomps. If I didn't know any better, I'd say those were footsteps. Given the pattern at which I heard them, I'd almost say there was an entire army of... whatever it is that's walking. I ran as I followed the Doctor's path.

"Doc!" I called for him, "There's something out there!"

The Doctor didn't look at me. He was using that star-topped stick again, with which he (somehow) managed to unscrew this glass vitrine, behind which there was some kind of machine I had never seen before. I assumed that was the thing that the Doctor was looking for, but I was sure there were more pressing matters.

"Doc, did you hear me?" I pressed on.

"Yes, I heard you." he replied, "It can't be the original inhabitants of this planet, they have lost interest in their own planet. If they're friendly visitors they wouldn't mind us doing what we're doing. But if they're hostile... did you let them know we're here?"

That was a good question, I thought. I did show myself to that army, but it's possible they heard me call for the Doctor, so in all honesty: "I'm not sure."

The Doctor listened himself. Wherever it was that we were in the building, I couldn't hear these... visitors marching on. It was possible they didn't hear me after all.

"Doesn't look like they know we're here." the Doctor said, "So for as long as they don't, we should be alright."

"Doc, you're taking this situation a little too lightly." I told him.

"And you're taking it too seriously." he rebutted.

"All this, just because you want to know something that may or may not be in my head?" I was starting to think there was something else going on.

Again, the Doctor didn't reply. Instead, he was doing something with that stick of his. I wasn't sure of what it was, but it seemed similar to what he tried on my cell-phone before. Only this time, he was pointing it at the machine, and later at the wall behind it. All the while, that stick made some kind of buzzing sound, which started to go on and off once he used it on the walls.

"Oh dear. I think I used it too many times in the Time Wars." he mumbled, as he started tapping it.

Again, too many thoughts came to mind. This was a serious situation, yet he seemed to take it so lightly. Then there's that buzzing stick he was using, which appeared to be some kind of Swiss knife, or a jack-of-all-trades, but he never explained what it is or what it does. And Time Wars? I'm sure he was referring to that war he deserted, but what am I supposed to understand under Time Wars? I know World Wars and Galaxy Wars, but Time Wars?

Somehow, tapping that... buzzer, just to give it a name, the Doctor could use it. With it, he somehow found something behind that wall. He got up, walked towards the nearest fire-extinguisher (I seriously began wondering how this species could be so advanced if it still needed fire-extinguishers), used it to smash a hole in the wall, and from that wall, he could pull out what looked like electric wires. Again, the Doctor did his thing with that buzzer, upon which he connected these wires to some other wires from the machine. After some time, he was finished. When he was, he noticed I was just staring, as I had no idea what he had just done.

"I don't know how long you've been working..." I said, "... but we could have been caught while you were... doing all that."

"Ah! But we weren't." the Doctor reminded me, "I told you, we'd be fine for so long as they don't know we're here."

"Yes, well you didn't boost me with any more confidence if you're using that... thing." I pointed to his buzzer."

"This?" the Doctor replied, "It's my sonic screwdriver."

On the one hand, I was happy to know what it is. On the other, I wondered whose bright idea it was to make a screwdriver that uses sonics.

"But I'm afraid I used it one too many times." the Doctor added, "I'll have to see if I can replace it."

"And you just made all this... with a malfunctioning..." I couldn't bring myself to say screwdriver, because of how ridiculous that sounded, "Anyway, with bad equipment?"

"I would love to get a better screwdriver." the Doctor said, "But if there really are others out there, the odds are against us. So we either search your memory now, or we'll never get another chance to."

I sighed, hoping he knows what he's doing: "So what do I do?"

"Just sit down." the Doctor said.

I didn't see any chairs nearby, so I sat on the ground. There were these pads attached to the machine, which the Doctor placed on my head. Once that was done, he immediately used his sonic screwdriver on the machine.

"Er... isn't there a more manual way of doing that?" I asked.

The Doctor paused, seeming surprised: "There is. But that will take a little longer."

This brought me to a dilemma. I either let him use that used screwdriver and risk suffering brain-damage, or have him use a slower approach, and risk being found. But as the Doctor himself put it, they don't know we're here.

"I'd just prefer if you don't use that thing." I said.

The Doctor started tapping the machine's keys: "Suit yourself."


	5. Chapter 5

As I waited for anything to happen, all I could do was wait. I remember thinking to myself I should have asked whether that Tardis, which was so much larger inside, would happen to have a library, so I could have something to read while I waited. But then, knowing that there was something outside, I probably wouldn't stay focused long enough to be able to read anyway, so I might as well not bother. Whatever it was that was out there, or whatever it was that the Doctor was planning to do, I was afraid that the one or the other would kill me. For some strange reason, as I waited, I remembered to have read this book long ago, "Elementary Dating", which had tips for how to pick up dates and how to treat them. I guessed I would never be able to find out if it's true that when you're in a restaurant and presented with the bill...

"Your date may offer to pay herself, which you should refuse... for a while." I heard myself say, "Wait, why am I saying that out loud? And why am I not feeling anything? Or seeing? Am I dead? How could I ask if I was? What's going on here?"

"Calm down, it's all right." I heard the Doctor say, "I succeeded."

"Succeeded?" I couldn't understand.

"Your mind is now in the computer." the Doctor explained, "It may take a while for you to adjust, Which is why I can hear what you're thinking."

"So he can hear me if I say I don't fully trust him." I thought to myself, but the machine I was in made me say it out loud.

"Well..." the Doctor seemed to smile, "... we'll work on that when we get there."

"I don't understand. He's not angry?" again, I merely thought it, "Damn, I need to learn to stop thinking."

"No you can't do that." the Doctor explained, "You just have to learn how to separate your thoughts from your speech."

"Can that be any more vague?" I asked.

I suddenly felt I did something. Not sure what it was, but I did something. Since I didn't actually feel anything, I can't describe what it felt like.

"I'm doing something here." I said.

"Don't worry, you're just making this light-bulb here flicker." the Doctor explained, "Must have been their way of testing the download?"

"Testing?" I couldn't understand.

"Well they'll have to know if you can control anything electric from where you are." the Doctor answered.

"Does that mean I can bring myself back to my own body?" I asked.

"No, they'll probably have safety measures to prevent that sort of thing." the Doctor said.

"Sounds cruel." I said.

"Not necessarily." the Doctor told me, "If they could control that part of the machine, they might accidentally download themselves back into their own brains."

My exact thoughts were "Accidentally he said", but for some reason it came out as: "Ac...enta... e sa..."

"Good, you're making progress." the Doctor said.

"You sure it's not just a machine malfunction?" the mere fact that that came out entirely made it a redundant question.

"Yes, I am sure." the Doctor replied anyway, "Now, I want you think back about the Seraphs."

I did exactly that. Although they had erased my memory back then, the Doctor managed to retrieve it. I could see that strange white room, with its transparent veils, and the hooded men.

"Good." the Doctor said, "Now, think about the conversation you had with that one Seraph."

I began wondering if the Doctor could somehow see my thoughts. I didn't pay close attention to the machine back then, so I don't know if there was a screen of some kind for him to look at. I thought about this one time I was in the sewers of Manhattan, just to see a reaction.

"Yes." the Doctor replied, "I can see what you're thinking. Is that what you wanted to know?"

That answered my question, so I went straight to the thought the Doctor asked me to think of.

I remembered I turned to look and saw old man, who had a reassuring smile on his face. That was the Seraph I spoke to.

"Fear not, you are safe here." he said.

"I'm sure that's what the aliens say after abducting people." I replied.

"Think further ahead." the Doctor said, "To when he explained what he did and why he did it."

"So you intervened." I were my words back then.

"Yes." the Seraph answered, "However, we did not intend to at first. We knew that if we didn't intervene, the Colonials would make it to Earth without bringing any permanent damage to the universe, so it would not have mattered if we helped your Time Lord friend."

"So what changed?" I asked.

"You did." he replied.

"Me?" I couldn't understand it.

"This isn't your era or your world." he explained, "You should not die here because of a battle that isn't yours."

"Good." the Doctor sounded, "I've found the memory."

"What's wrong with it?" I asked.

"He said something else, but he made you remember it wrong." the Doctor explained, "I'll have to see if I can restore it."

Whatever the Doctor did, it caused this moment to replay. I still asked the Seraph what changed, and his reply was still that I was the one who changed their minds. However, this time his reply was muted.

"What did you do?" I asked the Doctor.

"I've only managed to erase the lie, but I haven't uncovered the truth yet." the Doctor replied.

After that, I saw his side of the conversation being replayed over and over again. And every time, it seemed like his side lasted longer than originally. Even some of his mannerisms were different. Facial expressions changed, he took a few extra footsteps, made some extra moves, his lips started to say different words, and eventually I even began hearing his side.

"We examined your body." he said, "We've never seen one quite like yours."

After that, he said something about my eyes, my "idney" (which I'd guess should be "kidney"), and more about skull. Whatever this Seraph did, he must have done a very good job at hiding it, because the Doctor seemed to have a hard time unscrambling what it was.

"We're making progress." the Doctor assured me. "Don't worry, it wo..."

I can't be sure of what it was that happened next exactly. What I do know for sure is that the image of the Seraph and his ship vanished, and I had the impression that I was moving away. Next thing I knew, I could see again. I didn't even need to open my eyes, nor could I blink if I wanted to. What I saw was... I had no idea, there was a white surface before me, but I wasn't sure what it was or where it came from. I checked if I had an arm I could move. I could, but I didn't actually feel as though I felt it. It was more like I heard a voice tell me "arm stretches" and "fingers bald into fist". I know that in a technical sense, if someone is to move a limb, his or her brain sends a signal to that limb, and it moves. In this case, it was as though the body needs to let the brain know that it is moving.

"Stand up." I heard a voice say.

Given how it sounded like an order, I was certain that this wasn't the body I was in talking to me. As I was thinking that, the white surface moved away. This way, I could see what it was. It was the back of an android, much like the one I found lying on the street earlier. As he moved away, I saw it wasn't the only android. There were tons of others all around me. With them getting up, it left me with enough space to move myself. I looked down, and discovered that, as I feared, I wasn't inside my own body, I was inside one of these androids. The thought came that I may never return to my body, but strangely I didn't feel afraid of that.


	6. Chapter 6

Around me, there were androids, each in their own shape and form, but the main basics were the same. They had cameras for eyes, speakers for mouths, and what I assumed to be microphones for ears. Some where white, others were gray, several more were red, green, blue, yellow,... there even were androids on wheels instead of legs, or who used grappling hooks instead of hands. I guess even this planet's natives had their own taste, so naturally each wanted to inhabit another body when need be.

"Follow this signal." that voice returned to order us.

I don't know why, but I somehow knew where that signal came from. Every other android followed that order without question. My guess was that whoever is controlling these, it assumed we were all mindless drones, which I wasn't. I was curious to know who was doing this (even though I'd normally feel afraid and weight out the pros and cons first), so I followed everyone else, marching as they did.

On our way to the source, we passed by other androids. However, these ones were significantly different. Unlike the ones I was going along with, these ones were bigger, almost as though they were real men wearing robot suits, were gray, had these things on their heads which I can only describe as a strange sort of head-phones, they all looked the same but seemed to have individual thoughts as they didn't move along with the crowd, and even conversed with one another, using a strange monotonous tone. I began wondering what I would sound like if I use my current body's voice. These androids spoke a different language, but thanks to the Tardis I understood every word they said.

"Have you alerted the fleet?" Droid 1 asked the others.

"We have sent a message to the rest of the fleet." Droid 2 answered.

"But as we sent the message, something materialized in the room." Droid 3 answered.

"How did that happen?" Droid 1 asked.

"We don't know." Droid 3 answered, "We haven't been able to open it, but from what we have observed, we are almost certain it's that vessel that belongs to the Doctor."

"The Doctor is here?" if I didn't know any better, Droid 1 almost sounded scared.

"We do not know." Droid 2 answered, "If he were, he would have exited the vessel as soon as it arrived."

Droid 1 suddenly held its hand to its... headphone, upon which I heard that voice again: "Turn around, and search for people besides you and us."

This is mere guess-work on my part, but Droid 1 must have been that source, or at least be the one sending the message through some sort of relay station. It would also explain why I hear his voice in my own language this time, as he's just sending a signal which my mind interprets as a command, and all in terms which I would understand. Upon having received the command, every android turned to do as ordered. So much for these things not knowing we're here, I thought to myself.

The whole army of androids marched away, looking for the Doctor. I didn't know why, but there was something peculiar about the way these Droids spoke. Never mind for a moment that they know about the Doctor, they described the Tardis materializing in their... command center, I guessed, but they didn't seem surprised. Or differently put, they didn't expect it to happen, but they didn't act as though this were some great mystery which they have to solve. Just as strange was their choice of words. They didn't describe the materialization of the Tardis as "strange", "weird" or "mysterious". Nor did they use any words that would describe how they feel about the situation. It was as though they had no concept of expressing themselves. In a way, it shouldn't surprise me, knowing that androids generally think logically, but it was still weird to hear them talk that way.

After some time, we arrived at the museum. I knew that if the androids entered, they would attack the Doctor when they found him. But I also knew that they had no individual thoughts, so that could turn into an advantage.

"I'll search this building." I told the androids, "You search the others."

Strangely, they did as they were told. With them out of the way, I could enter and look for the Doctor myself.


	7. Chapter 7

As fast as my new body could (it wasn't build for running), I searched for the Doctor. I knew where he was the last time I saw him, so I decided to look there. As I searched, there was this strange realization going through me. Normally, when I run I can feel my feet touch the ground, my arms moving about, my breathing going haywire. I didn't feel that last bit, thank goodness, but nor did I feel the floor. Again, it was more like I heard a voice telling me what I was doing. It was as though I knew what I was doing, but I didn't actually feel it. The sooner I find the Doctor so he can fix this, the better.

When I arrived, I expected to see him trying to search that machine, see if I was still in there, and that my original body was still connected to it. Neither of which was the case. The machine was abandoned, with no sign of my body or the Doctor. I thought of calling for him, but there was a chance that the others would hear me if I did. Earlier they couldn't hear me, but that was possibly because they weren't looking for anyone alive, so likely they didn't pay much attention even if they did hear something. Now they are looking, and would heed the littlest sound they hear.

"How did you get there?" I heard the Doctor's voice, so I turned to see him, knowing I was relieved.

"Doc, it's me." I said, before I realized he may not recognize my voice.

"I know it's you." he said, "But who are you?"

I could almost feel my circuits fry, just because he was acting this stupid: "Doc, how many people do you think there are on this planet? How many of them know who you are? How many of them call you "Doc"? And how many of them know about the Seraphs, Bandora, the Colonials, Lecter,..."

I thought that if I referenced our earlier adventures, he'd realize I couldn't be anyone else. Which he did soon enough: "Oh, it is YOU! Why did you run off?"

"Do you think I'd purposefully leave my own body?" I questioned, "And where is it anyway?"

"In suspended animation." the Doctor said, "With your mind gone, there's no brain-activity, so I had to keep it alive until I found you."

I wondered where he got the equipment from to keep anything in suspended animation, but since this was a museum where they kept machines from before they became ghosts in machines, I could guess these people had the means for suspended animation at some point in their past, so all the Doctor had to do was look for it.

"Right." I replied, "Meanwhile, we've got bigger fish to fry. There are these things outside who gained control over every android on this planet."

"Really?" the Doctor seemed surprised, "What do they want with them?"

"I don't know." I answered, "They ordered us to go look for you."

"Us?" the Doctor asked.

"Me and other androids." I replied, "I'm not sure how or why, but I think I'm the only one with a mind of my own."

The Doctor scratched his chin: "This may explain something."

"Explain what?" I asked.

"Everything on this planet is powered up by its core." the Doctor explained, "So are the androids. But since nobody needed them in years, their batteries have been depleted. So whoever's out there just reloaded them."

"Which explains...?" I questioned.

"That machine I used..." the Doctor continued, "... it was meant to turn minds into information. But of course it would have what you would call a firewall which would keep the uploaded mind from entering the net before it was ready. I must have overlooked its existence."

"Are you saying I'm not in my own body because of your neglect?" I would get angry, but I experienced it more like I just heard somebody say the dumbest thing imaginable.

"Even if I didn't overlook it, I couldn't have anticipated they would want to drain power from the core, and accidentally take you with it." the Doctor explained.

I would say I calmed down, but with this body I don't even know how "tensing up" works, let alone "calming down".

"Those Droids you mentioned, what do they look like?" the Doctor asked.

I described to him exactly what I saw: gray, look like men in suits, strange head-phone things, monotonous voice, apparently capable of individual thought, and more details. The more I said, the more concerned the Doctor started to look. Before I knew it, he started running to... I had no idea, but I followed him (as best as I could).

While running, I fell down. The Doctor turned to look at me: "This isn't the time to lay down."

"Doc, I don't think this body was made for running." I told him.

He seemed more nervous that time. Seeing no other way, he ran back to me, picked me up and continued on his way. Finally, we arrived at another part of the museum, where there were machines that showed remarkable similarities with freezers back home. In one of these freezers was my organic body.

"I am sorry." he said, "But I'll be as quick as possible."

"Doc?" I didn't like the sound of that.

"I need to get your mobile." the Doctor explained, "Send a message to the Tardis."

"Yeah, speaking of which..." I started, "They've got your Tardis."

The Doctor paused, clearly he hadn't expected to hear that: "They got what?"

"I don't know how it happened either." I explained, "They sent a message to their... fleet, and the Tardis just materialized before their eyes."

The Doctor seemed really upset this time: "It must have received their call and acted upon it."

"Doc, what is going on?" I asked, "What are those Droids?"

"I assume you call them Droids because you think they're android?" the Doctor asked.

I nodded, so he continued: "They're not androids, they're Cybermen."


	8. Chapter 8

"Cybermen?" that was a new one, "What's a Cyberman?"

"Remember what I told you?" the Doctor explained, "About how the Seraphs sent monoliths throughout the universe, creating humanoids everywhere? These Cybermen are one of these humanoids."

"What are you saying?" I asked, "These Cybermen are human?"

"They used to be." the Doctor answered, "However, their society has developed a need to cybernetically improve upon the weaknesses of the human flesh. They turned the burning light of their technology on something they felt was holding them back. Emotions. Some would say they surgically removed their souls."

"Ouch." I said, though I realized how monotonous it sounded, seeing as I couldn't feel the pain I was imagining.

"And now, they have developed something of a superiority complex." the Doctor continued, "They will not rest until they have converted every last human being."

"That sounds familiar." I tried to make it sound as a sigh.

"What I don't understand is what they need this planet's androids for." the Doctor continued, "They can make androids of their own to do their bidding, so why use somebody else's?"

"Since you were trying to get us off this planet as fast as possible, I gather they're not planning anything good." I said.

"I wasn't fleeing." the Doctor corrected me, "I was hoping to use the Tardis to overload the planet's reactors, so it will explode, taking these Cybermen with them."

With my organic body, I would have raised an eyebrow: "Doc, are you always this destructive?"

The Doctor scratched his eyes: "Spoils of war, I'm afraid."

"What happened to preserving people's culture?" I asked, "It's why you didn't want the Colonials to leave their vessels behind."

"Anyway, it's out of the question now." the Doctor said, "I can try and use your mobile to contact the Tardis, but it's possible the Cybermen have shields that would prevent any such measure."

"So what do we do now?" I asked.

"If only there is a way for me to get inside their headquarters." the Doctor thought out loud, "Passed all their guards."

"That shouldn't be a problem." I said, "Remember, as far as these Cybermen are concerned, I'm just some drone they are commanding. And since they had set me and all the others out to find you..."

I didn't finish my sentence, but the Doctor was smart enough to figure it out: "Brilliant. As of now, I am your prisoner!"

I'm not sure why, but he somehow made that sound creepy.

The Doctor left the room, and I followed him. Once the two of us were outside, I had to push him in the right direction. I could just give him instructions, but we had agreed that doing so would give away that I did have a mind of my own. So I pushed him in the right direction, making it seem as though he was my prisoner indeed. Unfortunately, while I tried my best to stay in character, the Doctor himself didn't even try to pretend to be in any sort of trouble. As once we were outside and met with other androids, he started talking to them.

"Hello, I'm the Doctor. How are you?" he asked one android in passing.

Needless to say, the android didn't say much.

"Not very talkative?" the Doctor said, "That's a shame."

I had no trouble this time to push him forward that time. In so doing, it became clear to the other androids that their target was found, so they escorted us back to the Cybermen headquarters.

Eventually, we reached two of those Droids... Cybermen that I saw before. At least I think they were the same ones, but since all the Cybermen looked the same I could never be sure.

"Ah! The Cybermen!" the Doctor exclaimed, "Long time no see."

"Are you the Doctor?" one of them said, without any infliction of a question.

"I think so." the Doctor replied, "I seem to keep forgetting things ever since..."

"You have a different face again." the Cyberman said.

"Me? What about you lot?" the Doctor replied, "You always look different every time I see you."

This made me wonder two things. What did they mean with the Doctor changing his face? And if they always look different, how can the Doctor still recognize them for what they are?

"We have to take him to the Cyber Leader." the other Cyberman said.

"Agreed." was the reply.

Both of them flanked the Doctor and escorted him to this Cyber Leader they mentioned. I followed, but one of them turned around.

"You can stay here." he said.

"Now really..." the Doctor said, "... of all the androids, this was the one who caught me. Don't you think this at least deserves the honor of jo..."

"He has no place in our bridge." the Cyberman said.

"Wait." the other one said, "We will experiment on these androids soon. We should take one with us."

At that moment, I didn't know whether I should thank the Doctor for not leaving me alone, or punch him for allowing them to use me as a guinea pig.


	9. Chapter 9

I wasn't sure where they took us. We entered what looked like a building, but it may as well have been their own ship, settled on the planet as though it were a building. Either way, we were escorted to their main room, where we met with this Cyber Leader they mentioned.

"Is this the Doctor?" the Cyber Leader asked.

"It is." one of the Cybermen answered.

"Ah! You've found my Tardis!" the Doctor immediately turned to his blue booth, which I hadn't even noticed until he mentioned it. Probably because I was too bent on staying in my role as a mindless drone.

"You will not get off this planet." the Cyber Leader stopped him.

"Oh?" the Doctor seemed surprised, "Aren't we a little rude now."

"Maybe you are rude." the Cyber Leader said, "But I am not."

I gathered he took it literally when the Doctor said "aren't WE a little rude". Either that, or since these Cybermen have no emotions, they have no concept of being corny.

"You're not?" the Doctor sounded genuinely surprised, "Then who are you?"

"I am the Cyber Leader, of Mondas Survival Mission, Research Division, Special Cyber Squad." the Cyber Leader replied.

The Doctor didn't understand: "Cyber Search of the Yard?"

"I do not understand you." the Cyber Leader said.

"Neither do I." the Doctor said, "Since when do Cybermen take their time to give their missions or their task forces any such names?"

"Of every organic being, you are the one who should understand." the Cyber Leader said, "We were once a race that could take down entire armies of people, and yet it takes only one of you to destroyed our planet, take down many of our armadas, and to foil every one of our plans."

I could be mistaken, but this Cyber Leader sounded scared. It was as though he was afraid to even be near the Doctor.

"I confess." the Doctor said, "I may have caused you a few setbacks, but surely that doesn't stop you from conquering the whole universe, does it?"

"It won't." the Cyber Leader sounded different again, almost confident, "Because we now have found the solution to all our problems."

"How?" the Doctor questioned, "This planet has been abandoned for eons. There is nobody left for you to convert here."

"We do not plan to convert the natives." the Cyber Leader said, "We plan to convert ourselves."

I don't know if it's because I was inside a machine, and therefor could process my thoughts faster than I normally would, but I somehow figured out what he meant without having to ask anyone. The natives from this planet had somehow managed to separate themselves from their organic parts, living inside machines, only to eventually leave the machines and live as ghosts. If these Cybermen, as the Doctor explained to me, are trying to survive, but always ended up being blown up, they were forced to consider other alternatives. So they came to this planet, hoping to find out how the natives became detached from their physical bodies. That's what they needed all the android bodies for, they were hoping they could find a clue in them as to how it was done.

"I don't believe it." the Doctor seemed to have arrived at the same conclusion, "I never thought I'd see the day."

Hearing him, I wondered what conclusion he arrived at.

"You Cybermen have developed an inferiority complex?" the Doctor said, "And all because of me?"

That wasn't quite what I had in mind, but I guessed it did boil down to the same thing.

"When our research ends, the Cybermen will no longer be inferior, even to the Time Lords." the Cyber Leader said.

"And then what?" the Doctor questioned, "You continue what you've always been doing?"

"If there is one thing all living things desire, it's to live on even when the physical body seize functioning." the Cyber Leader explained, "We are granting them that opportunity."

"But not after you modified their minds with your own technology, I take it?" the Doctor questioned.

"We cannot have these people be controlled by unnecessary desires." the Cyber Leader explained.

In other words, so I thought to myself, humans would still have, as the Doctor would put it, their souls surgically removed, and then they'd be converted into ghosts. I can imagine a lot of people would love the idea of living as a ghost, but not losing their individuality in the process. While I couldn't feel the actual emotion, the idea just wouldn't compute, so without thinking about the consequences, I punched the two escort Cybermen. Since my arms were mechanical, I could penetrate their bodies easily, and pull out their wires. In so doing, these Cybermen deactivated.

"What is the meaning of this?" the Cyber Leader asked.

"Oh, nothing." the Doctor said, not at all surprised of what I did, "Let's just say that my friend here doesn't quite agree with your plans."

"Friend?" the Cyber Leader couldn't understand, though I'm not sure if that was because he had no concept of friendship, or because the Doctor just referred to an android (namely me) as a friend.

"Say..." the Doctor suddenly turned to some of the machinery in the room, "... this here doesn't happen to be the console with which you control those androids is it?"

"What of it?" the Cyber Leader asked.

"Nothing." the Doctor said, "Except that I wonder what would happen if I press..."

"You will not touch anything!" the Cyber Leader grabbed the Doctor's arm.

In reflex, I started towards the Cyber Leader. With both of my hands I crushed the Leader's arm. While he couldn't use that one anymore, he still had his other arm with which he punched me. I didn't know what he hit, nor did I have any way of knowing if he hit anything, because once he hit me, the body I was in shut down, turning everything black before me.


	10. Chapter 10

When you're told that one day you'll die, the best explanation that can be given is that you're asleep, without dreaming, and you never wake up. You're unable to see, hear, smell, touch, do anything. I didn't know what it was that the Cyber Leader did, but it brought me in that exact state. I didn't dream, I didn't see, I didn't feel, all was just dark. What was worse is that since I was in a machine, my thinking process worked as a machine as well. Since my thoughts process at a much faster rate than they would in my organic brain, what I would otherwise perceive as a few seconds started to feel like an eternity. To top all that off, I didn't know what the Doctor thought of me. He could see my destroyed android body and think that I'm dead. And with that, he will blow up the planet, as he was planning to do from the beginning. But how long would that take him? A few minutes? And if yes, if only a few seconds will feel like an eternity, how long will a few minutes be? So I'll be waiting for several eternities before I die. In my organic body, I would start to go crazy, but in this body, where I can't feel anything, this was perceived as an inconvenience. A thought that would scare me, but I didn't feel the fear. This caused a contradiction inside my own thoughts. The longer I thought about everything, the less sense things started to make. I could try not to think at all, but it was the only thing I could do in this situation.

I breathed in very deeply. I opened my eyes widely, while I felt my heart pounding inside my chest. What I did then, I can't remember for sure. I put my hands everywhere on my body, I breathed heavily for some minutes, I jumped out of... whatever I was in, screamed my head off,... not necessarily in that order, and probably a lot more things, but given the emotional state I was in I had little to no control over what I was doing or even thinking. At some point, I felt something hitting my head. It made me delirious for a few seconds, but in terms of thinking that was enough for me to rearrange my thoughts, and to calm down.

"Feeling better?" I heard the Doctor ask, although he sounded as though he were in pain as well.

I blinked my eyes, and rubbed my forehead, for that was where I was hit. I looked at the Doctor, and noticed he did the same thing. In other words, he had butt my head in order to calm me down. Seems crude, but evidently effective.

"Don't ever put me inside a machine again." I said, weakly.

"You have nothing to worry about." the Doctor seemed to whine.

I shook my head, which woke me up a little more. This way, I could take a better look at that machine I got out of. It was that stasis pod the Doctor had put my organic body in. Next to it lay that android body that I was in earlier. It looked damaged, which was to be expected. I don't know much about robotics, computers or machinery in general, but since I could still think and had all my memories, I would guess my mechanical body's CPU and hard-drive were still functioning. However, there must have been some kind of central system that would allow information to be sent and received (like me sending signals to the body so it would move, and receiving information through my "eyes" and "ears"), but the Cyber Leader damaged that, so there wasn't much I could do if I wanted to. Suddenly, I realized something else. All the other stasis pods in the room were switched on. And upon hearing many noises I didn't know, but all of which seemed to originate from the just outside the room, I realized something else.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Why won't I show you?" the Doctor suggested, "Come along."

It was then that I first noticed the Tardis was there. The Doctor opened the doors to enter, and I followed.

Inside, the Doctor pulled a few levers, pressed a few buttons, and suddenly turned back to the door. He opened it to show me the outside. What I saw was both gratifying, and weird, because I had no idea of what started all this. From the looks of it, all the androids had turned against the Cybermen. And not just the androids, but also the cars we had spotted upon exiting the Tardis when we first landed here. This was gratifying, as the Cybermen were losing, but weird because I didn't understand what was happening.

"What did you do?" I asked.

"There was a console on that bridge." the Doctor explained, "It sends a signal to the androids, giving them orders. I used it to order them to attack the Cybermen. I even amplified the signal so other machines react to it as well."

"Which takes care of the Cybermen here." I understood that much, "But what about the ones that are on their way?"

The Doctor shut the doors and returned to the console, while explaining: "Remember what I explained to you? About how the natives get their power directly from the planet's core?"

"Yes?" I replied.

"Well, these Cybermen have connected their ship to this planet's grid, so they could stay here long-term, while they investigated their way into apotheosis."

How hard can it be to say "turn themselves into ghosts"? But I decided to not say that out loud.

"However, now that I'm using their ship to send out a continuous signal..." the Doctor had started to use his console at that moment, "... that is being broadcast all over the planet, it's draining far more energy from the core than it otherwise would. The core can never sustain that much drainage."

"So you're saying..." I started, but the Doctor raised a finger to shush me.

With this, he turned around to the doors again. He opened them, and showed me what was happening. More of these Cyber-ships arrived, just when the planet seemed to crack open, and eventually explode, taking the Cyber-ships with it. This sight, while spectacular to behold, it was also horrible to think that the Doctor just destroyed one of the most significant planets in the whole universe.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" I asked.

"Didn't I tell you before?" the Doctor replied, "If it meant to save the universe, I am sure the Seraphs wouldn't mind their planet being blown up."

He shut the doors and returned to the console.

"Too bad you couldn't unscramble my memory." I said.

"Indeed." the Doctor agreed, "However..."

That didn't sound very comforting.

"From what I have been able to recover..." the Doctor explained, "... they seemed to think there was something special about your body."

Here it comes, I thought to myself.

"Shortly after I put you into stasis, I took the liberty of examining your body." the Doctor said, "Your skull seems to be thicker than most other humans. Not much, but enough to block out certain brain-waves. This must be why the Tardis, while still capable of translating for you, you still hear it when other speak a different language than yours. Also, every human eye has a blind spot, but yours don't."

That, I guessed, would explain why I've been able to see things that others couldn't.

"And additionally, you don't have any scars, at least not any that are older than a year." the Doctor continued, "None of your organs show any signs of... overuse, to use simple terms. It's like you're only a year old, yet you..."

"I died." I interrupted the Doctor.

This time, I got him to raise an eyebrow: "You died?"

"I'll spare you all the details." I explained, "But what it comes down to is that my body was completely demolished. Until some people restored it."

For a few seconds, the Doctor didn't know what to say: "Well... that certainly explains a lot. But who could have that power to do such a thing?"

"Remember our first adventure?" I answered, "Where we met those humans who lived among the dinosaurs? Who worshiped some deity?"

"Yes, of course I remember." the Doctor replied.

"He was one of them." I continued, "That deity, I mean."

"He restored your body?" the Doctor seemed to have a hard time believing that.

"Guess he wasn't just some old piece of technology, like you thought he was." I remarked.

The Doctor recovered from this: "You said he was one of them? Who else did this?"

I took out my cell-phone while answering: "The same person who gave me this."

I expected another look of surprise, but instead the Doctor seemed fascinated: "I already thought it had a peculiar design."

I put the cell-phone back in my pocket, when the Doctor suddenly exclaimed: "Of course! I almost forgot."

He turned to his console again, where he pressed a few buttons.

"What are you doing?" I asked him.

"The Cybermen managed to high-jack my Tardis because it responded to a signal they sent." the Doctor explained, "I'm making it so it won't respond to any more signals on its own."

"What?" I couldn't believe it, "It saved my life before!"

"And it almost killed us last." the Doctor said, "I am sorry, but I can't take such chances."

Once the Doctor has something on his mind, there was no talking him out of it. One lesson learned about him. Suddenly, the Doctor started to punch a few different buttons, which I recognized as the ones he normally uses for traveling.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I'd love to know more about this man that can restore physical bodies." the Doctor said, "Plus I promised I'll take you to see Earth in 1978."

"Right." I said, "So?"

"Well, we know he'll be in Japan until early 1993." the Doctor explained, "So why won't we pay him a visit before he goes away?"

"Japan!" the thought alone scared me, "At this point in history?"

The Doctor grinned: "We'll be just fine."

**THE END**


End file.
